Panama v Tunisia (2018 World Cup)
| next = }} Panama v Tunisia was a match which took place at the Mordovia Arena on Thursday 28 June 2018. Preview and teams's preparation Tunisia will have to use their third different goalkeeper in the tournament in their final match against Panama. Mouez Hassen suffered a shoulder injury against England in their first game and Farouk Ben Mustapha, who played against Belgium, injured his knee in training. That leaves Aymen Mathlouthi as the only available keeper in their squad. Panama will have to make at least two changes from the side that lost 6-1 to England on Sunday as Michael Murillo and Armando Cooper are both suspended. Tunisia will also be without central defender Dylan Bronn, who was carried off with a left knee injury after scoring in the 5-2 loss to Belgium on Saturday. Both sides are already eliminated after two defeats each and Panama need to win to avoid finishing bottom of Group G in their first appearance at a World Cup finals. Panama have conceded the most goals in this tournament as a 3-0 loss to Belgium was followed by the heavy defeat by England, although Felipe Baloy made history by becoming the first Panamanian player to score at a finals. Tunisia will regret conceding a last-minute goal to Harry Kane as England won 2-1 in their opener, before the African side were outclassed by Belgium. This was their first appearance at a finals since 2006 and they have maintained their unwelcome run of never making it out of the group phase. However, they will be confident of recording only their second World Cup victory, with their previous win being a 3-1 success over Mexico in 1978. Tunisia are 21st in the world rankings, while Panama are down in 55th as they look for their first World Cup victory after their shock qualification, which pushed the United States out of contention in October. Head to head This will be the first meeting between Panama and Tunisia. Match A second-half strike from Sunderland's Wahbi Khazri ensured Tunisia ended their World Cup Group G campaign with a victory, as Panama finished bottom. The north African side, who had 14 chances, fell a goal behind when Jose Luis Rodriguez's effort deflected in off Yassine Meriah. Fakhreddine Ben Youssef equalised when he tapped home Khazri's low ball. The provider of that goal then scored his second of the tournament when he fired home Oussama Haddadi's cross. In the build-up to this match, Tunisia coach Nabil Maaloul had said his team were "two generations" from reaching the level needed be competitive against the best sides in world football. Aside from the 5-2 defeat by Belgium, that assessment is perhaps a little harsh as his side almost earned a point against England before this deserved victory. They often overwhelmed their opponents in attack inside Mordovia Arena, with Khazri the heartbeat of their attack. His pinpoint cross for Ben Youssef helped Tunisia draw level, before he settled the contest with a close-range finish - the 2,500th goal in World Cup tournament history. Khazri was denied a second goal, his third of the tournament, by an exceptional one-handed stop by keeper Jaime Penedo. The 27-year-old might be a man in demand after his displays in Russia - Sunderland say they have already rejected offers, and may now have to consider more. When Panama scored their first goal at a World Cup, in the 6-1 defeat by England, there were tears of joy in the central American country. Having lost the lead against Tunisia, perhaps there will be a feeling of disappointment this time. But luck was on their side for their goal. Tunisia's Aymen Mathlouthi appeared to be in the right position to collect a shot from Rodriguez, however the ball took a slight deflection which fooled the keeper. That was one of the few times they troubled Tunisia's third-choice keeper. Edgar Barcenas went close twice, but his first effort was blocked by Mathlouthi and the second was disallowed for an earlier foul. Panama finish with zero points from their first World Cup campaign, but their legion of travelling fans will no doubt be satisfied they managed to see their team in football's biggest tournament. Details |goals2 = F Ben Youssef Khazri |stadium = Mordovia Arena, Saransk |attendance = 37,168 |referee = Nawaf Shukralla (Bahrain) }} |valign="top"| |valign="top" width="50%"| |} Final Group G Table |w=3 |d=0 |l=0 |gf=9 |ga=2 |bc=lightgreen|advances = y}} |w=2 |d=0 |l=1 |gf=8 |ga=3 |bc=lightgreen|advances = y}} |w=1 |d=0 |l=2 |gf=4 |ga=8|eliminated=y}} |w=0 |d=0 |l=3 |gf=2 |ga=11|eliminated=y}} |} Match Stats= {| class="wikitable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center" |- !width=130|Overall !width=70|Panama !width=70|Tunisia |- !scope=row|Goals scored |1||2 |- !scope=row|Total shots |9||14 |- !scope=row|Shots on target |4||6 |- !scope=row|Ball possession |31%||69% |- !scope=row|Corner kicks |0||6 |- !scope=row|Fouls committed |18||19 |-| See also *2018 FIFA World Cup :*2018 FIFA World Cup Group G External links *Match report at BBC.co.uk Category:2018 FIFA World Cup Matches